The volunteers of Boys Republic don't refuse anything --not donated goods, and not young people in trouble
by Laura Berthold Monteros
If you’ve ever had the unfortunate experience of gathering up all your unused clothes and household items for a charity collection, only to have the place refuse to take it, you will appreciate the philosophy of the Boys Republic Thrift Shop in Altadena.
Pictured: The Boys Republic Thrift Shop at 2261 N. Lake
“We do not refuse anything,” says Mella Brienza, president of the Pasadena Auxiliary of the Boys Republic. “People bring things, they have to load their cars, they’re nice enough to think of us.”
What’s even more amazing is that the auxiliary, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, finds a use for almost everything. Damaged or stained clothing goes to an Altadena church for the homeless or downtown missions. Sweaters and blankets are taken to homeless folks in the winter. Blankets with holes go to animal shelters. “Very rarely do we throw stuff away,” Brienza says.
A quarter century in Altadena
The thrift shop on North Lake Avenue has served the community for 25 years with low-priced clothing and goods, raising $1,515,101 for the Boys Republic in that time. Starting the first week in November, the shop will also have order forms for the beautiful fresh Della Robbia wreaths created by the boys to raise funds.
Pictured: store volunteers Louise Laub and John Spalenka.
Brienza said 98 percent of the money raised at the thrift shop goes to the Boys Republic, which includes the Girls Republic in Monrovia and several sites off the main Chino campus. The rest pays for trash and utilities. Boys Republic owns the building the shop is in, which includes Altadena Florist and some offices in back. An office that used to be tenanted by a lawyer is now the furniture showcase.
Prior to opening the thrift shop, the auxiliary held two rummage sales a year at the Pasadena Center, until it became too costly. Over the 100 years the Pasadena Auxiliary has supported Boys Republic, they have raised money that enabled the organization, among other things, to put in a track and chapel at the Chino campus, purchase vans, and reroof buildings.
For all the help the women of the Pasadena Auxiliary give to others, at this point they need some help themselves. After 25 years of serving the community, the human resources are running thin.
Looking for volunteers
At one time, there were up to 70 women in the auxiliary who would donate at least 17 hours per month to the thrift shop. Now, there are only 10 members. Volunteers who are not members help out, and some of them are men.
Pictured: volunteer Ginnie Schofield at the appliance section.
Brienza says the declining membership is due to many factors, which include aging and more women working during the day. As two of the younger members, she and vice president Edna Fabbro are responsible for running the shop.
She wants to see membership expanded by allowing men to join—there are currently four men who volunteer in the store—and urging volunteers to become members. The organization is run democratically, but only members can vote and make decisions.
The most compelling reason to join up, though, is reflected in Brienza’s own reason for becoming part of the auxiliary. As a lifelong volunteer in a number of women’s organizations, she says, “I stayed with Boys Republic because you can actually see the work they’re doing.”
Hands-on experience
She enjoys working with the boys and girls who come into the thrift shop to help out and get work experience credit. (Local students can also get service points for working in the shop.)
Pictured: the Boys Republic store holds a variety of items.
“When you’re on the campus, you see the joy in those boys, see that the staff is so caring. If the boys and girls want to go to college, we send them to college. If they don’t have a place to live after graduation, we don’t just throw them out—we have apartments they can live in.
“Four girls who are going to college will be living in apartments in Monrovia. They can eat in the main house if they want to, and use the laundry facilities.
“We never, ever send a boy or girl out. If they can’t go home, they can stay there as long as they go to college or work. If they work, they pay a nominal rent and their share of the utilities. When they’re ready to leave, we hand that money all back to them.”
Boys Republic was founded in 1901 by Pasadena philanthropist Margaret Brewer Fowler and other child-care advocates. The children who live at the Boys and Girls Republics come through the court system, and learn how to be productive citizens at the facilities. According to the 2010 Annual Report, 100 percent of the girls who have completed the program are not on welfare and are attending school, working, or in the military. Overall, 90 percent of graduates are not on welfare, and 88 percent are working, in school, or in the military.
Necessary info
The Boys Republic Thrift Shop is located at 2261 N. Lake Ave. in Altadena and is open every day except Sunday and Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
To volunteer or become a member, call the shop at (626) 798-6141 or Mella Brienza at (323) 254-3835.
For more information on Boys Republic, Girls Republic, and other programs, visit the website at http://www.boysrepublic.org/index.html
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Laura Berthold Monteros writes about Altadena.
